1. Field Of The Invention
This invention pertains to an improved pierced earring post, and more particularly to a pierced earring post with an improved securing method. The invention provides a pierced earring post that may be securely fastened to a pierced earlobe without the use of a separate fastener for the post.
2. Description Of The Prior Art
A common means of fastening ornaments to the ear is to pierce the earlobe and to insert posts or wires through the resulting hole. Once inserted, securing the post or wire to the earlobe is necessary. If unsecured, the post or wire would slide out of the ear, and the ornament would be lost. This is a particular problem when the earring ornament is a precious gem. The primary means used to secure pierced earring post to an earlobe is a back fastener. Whether of screw-type or sliding-type, all back fasteners are separate pieces which secure the post to the ear by being releasably secured to the post on the side of the earlobe opposite the ornament, normally applied from the front of the earlobe and the back fastener is then secured from the back of the earlobe.
Securing methods are not the only concern with pierced earrings. Because earrings are inserted into a wound when the ears are initially pierced, the material composition of the earring post must not promote infection. For this reason, the set of earrings worn while the earlobe is healing is typically gold or a hypo-allergenic metal. For some persons, infection may continue to be a concern even after the wounds have healed, and they may have to continue to wear gold or hypo-allergenic earrings.
Current earring post technology suffers from a number of disadvantages. First, because the back fastener is a separate piece, it is easily lost, which often results in the loss of the earring ornament also. Further, many people consider back fasteners unattractive on the back of the earlobe, or they may find the compression of the earlobe uncomfortable. In addition, gold or hypo-allergenic metals are expensive and the cost is increased many times because many earring wearers own a number of different earrings. Posts are permanently affixed to earring ornaments and for every new ornament desired a new post must also be bought.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved pierced earring post. A principal object of this invention is to provide an improved method of fastening a pierced earring post to an earlobe. It is a further object of the present invention to eliminate the possibility of losing the fastener which secures the earring post in place and thus losing the earring ornament itself. It is another object of the invention to provide a more attractive means of securing pierced earring posts in the earlobe.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a less expensive and hypo-allergenic earring post and to eliminate the need to buy earring posts each time an earring ornament is bought.
These and additional objects are attained by the present invention which relates to a self-contained earring for pierced ears. The present invention overcomes all of the above-mentioned disadvantages of the prior art. Possible loss of the fastening means is obviated by the use of a post with a flexible tip that is biased to assume a position different from the axial position. In another embodiment, a sleeve is provided around the tip, which sleeve is slidable to allow the tip to deflect or to return to an axial position. The end of the post is split, allowing the tip to deflect as the sleeve slides along the post. The post is inserted from the front of the earlobe by sliding the sleeve toward the post tip. As the post tip is inserted into the hole in the earlobe, the sleeve is moved toward the mounting face at the front of the earlobe, which allows the post tip to deflect and secures the tip to the earlobe back.
The present invention can be made of plastic, which does not irritate the ears or cause infection. The use of plastic as compared to precious metals also greatly reduces the cost of producing the post themselves. The present invention further reduces the cost of producing the earring because the post can be independent of the earring ornament. The post of the present invention includes a mounting face to be worn at the earlobe front. Various ornaments may be mounted on the earring post by sliding the ornament over the mounting face. The cost of earrings is reduced because ornaments and posts may be sold independently. Thus, a person desiring numerous ornaments would need to buy only a single set of posts.